Very strange, I to have orderd an 2.0 Tdi A4 S-line with 19" 7 double spoke wheels with lowered 30mm S-line suspension, order has gone through with no problems build week 21.
I would give Audi customer services a call to check this out for you, don't seem right to me.
Good luck, J.

HighwayTG

10-05-2008, 11:26 AM

Julian,

I spoke to Audi this morning about this issue and they confirm they have received notification dated 9/05/08 which states that they will not take orders with the 19'' wheels and S-Line 30mm drop suspension or Audi Drive Select. This went out to all dealers on Friday.

The guy suggested (not official but his view) that Audi have discovered that adversely laden cars or in situations of extreme acceleration/braking causes tyre rubber scrape on 19'' wheels with these combinations.

HODG

10-05-2008, 01:01 PM

does this mean that the orders that have already been placed will come with the 30mm drop onthe 19's or its only if you order now they will not make them ?

mkc

10-05-2008, 06:40 PM

Given that the 19 inch wheels cost £600ish and the lowering is free I would suspect your car will turn up with the wheels running at 20mm lower.......... not the other way around!

I checked with Audi and they said all was fine. Will be checking again tomorrow....

Julian.P

12-05-2008, 08:42 PM

Hi chaps, Rang my dealer today regarding the alleged suspension problems Audi have with the 19” wheels. The dealership are unaware of any problems, he checked my order to see if any changes had been made, order was still showing 19” 7 arm double spoke wheels with S-line 30mm drop suspension. Build week is confirmed at week 21, which is next week, I would have thought if Audi was to make any changes to the spec they would have contacted the dealership by now.

HighwayTG

13-05-2008, 03:24 PM

After hearing how some people have managed to order this combination I contacted my Audi dealer again for a more detailed explanation.

They have again confirmed that you can definitely not order this combination as of last Thursday (I’ve included the official Audi correspondence that has gone out to all the dealers)
http://highwaytg.picturepush.com/showformat.php?format=1024&alid=19589&clid=8957

Strangely (and frustratingly) Audi Sales Office are automatically dropping of the 30mm suspension with this combination, my dealer only found out by chance that it was done.

This was my dealer response via email :

As per our earlier conversation please find the attached information
regarding the 19 inch alloy wheels and 30mm S-Line suspension..... again sorry for the inconvenience this may have caused!!! As explained your order was automatically amended by sales office and the suspension was removed and is no longer available.

B6Andy101

13-05-2008, 09:27 PM

Sad news indeed. Audi UK have today confimed that the 19's are not compatible with the S-line (30mm) suspension. They are available with the Sports (20mm) suspension.

At least I get to know before ordering....you guys must be sick as a dog.

Julian.P

14-05-2008, 06:04 PM

Had a call from my dealership today, they have been in touch with Audi sales office who have confirmed that my A4 S-line will be built with the 30mm drop S-line suspension and 19” wheels. There appears to be a supply problem with 2009 build year A4’s hence the reason around May 8th Audi dropped the S-line suspension with 19” wheels, still don’t explain how you can order S-line suspension with 18” wheels, probably more popular with the 19’s

B6Andy101

14-05-2008, 06:11 PM

This is just taking the p***. They say it is not compatible yet they are supplying???? Which dealer are you using...I'd like to push for the 19's and 30 drop and give an example that they are supplying.

B6Andy101

14-05-2008, 06:17 PM

.

B6Andy101

14-05-2008, 06:18 PM

:zx11:

Julian.P

14-05-2008, 08:22 PM

Hi Andy, I ordered my A4 S-line on 25th March, build year 2008, 19” wheels and S-line 30mm drop suspension were than available as an option. Unfortunate for you your dealer is correct. As from around 8th May, for reasons Audi only no, you no longer can order 19” wheels with lowered S-line suspension. I now consider my self fortunate that I placed my order when I did.

RickT

14-05-2008, 11:41 PM

Spoke to a contact today who was saying he thinks its due to the rear arches when towing as per the recommened towing weight. The figures for towing on the car are the same with which ever wheels you get.

place a 1.3 ton caravan on the back and they "may" rub over bumps which is a saftey issue, most people may not tow with them, but they need to cover their behinds for the life of the car...

Thats just one point... (and may not be 100% true but is understandable.)

Rick

steve1234

15-05-2008, 01:09 PM

Just to add my tupence worth!!!!

I was disappointed that I couldn't have the 19" wheels on my early S-Line car but now that I'm driving it on the 30mm lower suspension down the rubbish British roads I question if you'd really want them!!! The car handles well on the 18s and look pretty cool (better on 19s I admit) but if you hit a pot hole you'd have no chance!! On my old car I had 18 inch "5 arms" and had to buy 3 replacements over the 2 year ownership as they cracked!!! (I do try to miss them but sometimes people come the other way etc etc....)

My original plan was to buy some wheels after delivery but now I'm re-thinking this.

Another weird thing is it seems part of this problem could be that the tyres on the 19s are to big??!! Audi have put a 255/35R19 on the wheel (an 8.5j) which makes it 8mm bigger diameter than the 245/40R18 on mine. That's enough for a speedo error, I wonder if they re-calliberate? Doubt it, and even if they do I bet a dealer would sell you a set for retro fit and not think about the speedo. If they had fitted the car 8j wheels and 245/35R19 they would be the same (1mm bigger actually) as mine and would be OK for clearance.

It's probably a combination of the additional 10mm drop, the 8mm bigger diameter and the additional 10mm in width that gives the possibility of the tyre catching on the inner edge.

So, the moral of this story is - get the 30mm drop, save £650 pounds and spend that on some proper size 19" wheels if you must!!!!

RichardCranium

15-05-2008, 01:50 PM

those particular 19's ahve been around for a while now. A friend of mine has them on his A6 S Line, which he ahs had for over a year. I guess they are not going to re-make them slightly smaller to suit the A4, rather - make fit

HighwayTG

15-05-2008, 03:24 PM

I really liked the wheels, so when I was asked to choose between either the suspension height or the wheels, I chose the wheels, for me they actually sold the car.

Hopefully I won't notice the 10mm difference, especially as the gap between wheel and arch will be the same as a 30mm drop on 18'' wheels. Also the 20mm should give a more comfortable ride.

Julian.P

15-05-2008, 08:55 PM

I don’t believe for one minute that a car manufacture like Audi would offer an option on any of there vehicles that would render it unfit for general road use. The new A4 is basically an A5 with rear doors, it shares the same floor pan and suspension. The majority of A5’s I have seen on the road run on 19” wheels, with suspension that looks lower than standard A4 S-line suspension. S5 has an option of 9J x 20” wheels and looks lower than standard A5, with no wheel rubbing issues.

steve1234

16-05-2008, 11:28 AM

Julian,

You're right of course that Audi will not build and sell a car that is not fit for the purpose, that's obviously why they are not going to build a car with 30mm drop and 19" wheels for reasons that ultimately will only be known by them in detail.

Again, you're right that the A5 is the same floor plan but it is very different when it comes to the wheels etc. that can be fitted as an A5 runs on a 26mm wider track than the A4 and the S5 is 30mm wider, therefore it probably gives room for those lovely big wheels!!!

I think if your car gets delivered with 19" wheels it will have the 20mm, and I'm not sure how you'd check other than finding out the 3 digit order code and then checking the data sticker at the front of the service book on delivery.

HighwayTG

16-05-2008, 03:18 PM

Audi A4 B7 on 19'' seven spokes, do you thing this is with the 30 or 20 mm drop ?

http://vipfast.com.au/a4.jpg

Julian.P

16-05-2008, 04:33 PM

Hmm, looks lower than a 30mm drop, may be a 40mm!! looks good with the 19's

Julian.P

16-05-2008, 04:58 PM

Hi Steve thanks for your comments. I will know straight away if the car has the S-line suspension, as my first order was cancelled because the dealer thought the S-line suspension was standard. When they realised they had made the mistake, the build week had been confirmed so they were unable to change it. Fortunately they had a stock car on order running a week behind which they were able to change to my spec with the S-line lowered suspension. So when I collect it, I will be able to see both cars, fingers crossed one with the lowered suspension and one without.